ARPA-E

About: ARPA-E is a government organization based out in Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Climate change. The organization has 1161 authors who have published 1267 publications receiving 30049 citations. The organization is also known as: Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy.

Magnetic fields exposure from high-voltage power lines and risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in two Italian populations.

Abstract: The aetiology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a rare and extremely severe neurodegenerative disease, has been associated with magnetic fields exposure However, evidence for such a relation in the general population is weak, although the previous null results might also be due to exposure misclassification, or a relationship might exist only for selected subgroups To test such a hypothesis we carried out a population-based case-control study in two Northern and Southern Italy regions, including 703 ALS cases newly diagnosed from 1998 to 2011 and 2737 controls randomly selected from the residents in the study provinces Overall, we found that a residence near high-voltage power lines, within the corridors yielding a magnetic fields of ≥01 μT, was not associated with an excess disease risk, nor did we identify a dose-response relationship after splitting the exposed corridor according to the 01, 02 and 04 μT cut-points of exposure These results were confirmed taking into account age at onset, period of diagnosis, sex, geographical area, and length of exposure Overall, despite the residual possibility of unmeasured confounding or small susceptible subgroups not identified in our study, these results appear to confirm that the exposure to magnetic fields from power lines occurring in the general population is not associated with increased ALS risk

Cohort study of residents of a district with soil and groundwater industrial waste contamination

Abstract: Introduction. A neighbourhood of the city of Ferrara (Italy) was built over an area polluted with chlorinated organic compounds. A residential cohort study was performed to assess the health profile of the population living in the polluted area. Methods. The residential history of 3475 subjects who had lived in the East quadrant neighbourhood in the period 1994-2010 was constructed. Mortality for the period 19942010 and cancer incidence for the years 1994-2007 were studied. Standardised mortality ratios (SMR) for 2632 subjects and standardised incidence ratios (SIR) for 2578 subjects who had lived for at least 5 years in the area under study were calculated. Indicators were calculated for males and females combined, using the population of Ferrara as reference population. Results: The health profile of the population of the East quadrant neighbourhood, de fined using mortality indicators for major groups of causes, is essentially similar to that of the city of Ferrara. Increased mortality rates for lung cancer (SMR 131, 90% CI 94-178) and incidence rates for some cancer sites, including liver (SIR 135, 90% CI 67-243) were observed, albeit on the basis of few cases and with wide confidence intervals. Discussion. The likelihood of observing significant increases in risk is reduced by the sizes of the cohorts and the short follow-up period, but some findings nonetheless sug gest that, as a precautionary measure, the cohort study should be continued in parallel with measures for the reclamation of the site and that this study should take the form of epidemiological surveillance.

Influence of Grapevine Cultivar on the Second Generations of Lobesia botrana and Eupoecilia ambiguella.

Abstract: Grapevine cultivar can affect susceptibility to Lobesia botrana and Eupoecilia ambiguella with important implications on control strategies. A four-year study was carried out in north-eastern Italy on 10 cultivars (Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere, Chardonnay, Merlot, Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso, Rhine Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Terrano, Tocai Friulano and Verduzzo Friulano) grown in the same vineyard to assess whether the cultivar affects second-generation population levels of the two vine moths and L. botrana larval age composition. The influence of bunch traits measured at the peak of egg hatching on demographic parameters was also evaluated. Over the four years, L. botrana significantly prevailed over E. ambiguella in nine cultivars. Chardonnay and Tocai Friulano were the most infested cultivars and Merlot was the least infested. At the sampling date, the age composition of L. botrana varied with cultivar, with the larvae being significantly older on Chardonnay and younger on Carmenere, Merlot and Verduzzo Friulano. Older larval age was significantly associated with higher bunch compactness. Larval infestation was not significantly influenced by either bunch compactness or berry volume, which suggested a more important role for contact and volatile substances mostly originating from the berries. These results allow for the improvement of Integrated Pest Management strategy against vine moths.